Police reinstate annual awards

November 14, 2012

By

RUSS OLIVO

WOONSOCKET â€” You know the old bromide about no good deed going unpunished?
Well, itâ€™s hardly like that for the men and women in blue of the Woonsocket Police Department, but Chief Thomas Carey says police officers donâ€™t always get the recognition they deserve for good conduct, extra effort, or honing a special talent.
Thatâ€™s about to change.
After an absence of more then a decade, the WPD is preparing to restore its annual Departmental Recognition Awards. Eligible police officers could receive awards for officer of the year, educational achievement, physical fitness, life-saving, merit and valor, among others.
Civilians and civic organizations wonâ€™t be left out, either.
â€śOften there are people in the community who are not police officers who help the police department,â€ť he says. â€śWeâ€™d like to recognize those people or their organizations for the good works that they do.â€ť
A veteran of the St. Petersburg, Fla., police department who was tapped as chief in 2008, Carey said police officers are often credited internally, with letters of commendation and such, for service beyond the call of duty.
After a few years on the job, he began wondering why the department didnâ€™t have a more public way of delivering the plaudits.